


another takes his place

by FearlessMayProceed



Category: Final Fantasy XV, Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2018-12-09
Packaged: 2019-09-15 07:03:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16928679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FearlessMayProceed/pseuds/FearlessMayProceed
Summary: Ventus aids Sora when he needs it most.Noctis and the gang meet one of Sora's friends.





	another takes his place

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by destiny-islanders on tumblr who has an amazing au where Sora hangs out with the FFXV gang and you should definitely check it out. This is an au of an au I think, with Ventus and everyone still inside Sora, despite him being a little older.
> 
> Some swears and some description of fighting but nothing too bad.

This was going to be a tough fight, Sora knew, already out of breath as he dodged teeth and claws from three Coeurl at once. He needed to regroup with his friends. 

Sora panted slightly as he looked around, keyblade grasped tight in his grip. The initial attack had scattered the group, now he could barely see his friends through the swarm of Coeurl that had ambushed them. They were unprepared and ill-equipped and at a severe disadvantage due to the disappearing sun taking the light with it. 

Noctis was the easiest to spot, the bright blue flares were beacons in the darkening day, clear signs that the prince was at least making an effort to dodge the attacks, although Sora couldn’t tell how successful he was being.

Ignis and Gladio were somewhere to his right, having managed to stay together, and were now fighting back to back, if the smooth transitions between the sounds of a great sword and knives hitting the beasts were anything to go by.

Prompto was the closest to him. Sora felt a stab of anger at the sight of blood seeping from his friend’s arm. They had been unprepared to fight, preoccupied with searching for a campsite after a long day of hunting when the Coeurl had attacked. Now they were fighting outnumbered with no potions to back them up and injuries were already beginning to appear on the boys.

Sora lifted his keyblade up in an attempt to cast Blizzard, but all that came out was a puff of cold air. He recovered from this failure a second too slow, barely managing to twist away from an incoming swipe so that it caught his side instead of his chest. He hissed in annoyance at the sudden pain but was able to get payback via a slash to the beast’s back.

“You alright porcupine?” Gladio called, as he tried to move nearer but was stopped by another attack from behind that he quickly turned to face and counter. 

“I’m fine,” Sora replied, as he parried another set of claws, “my jacket’s not though, the bastard tore right through it.”

“Language,” Noctis said, having slipped between the Coeurl using his warps in order to get closer to the rest of them. Sora was impressed at how Noctis managed to smirk at him in between dodging blows. 

“Fuck you,” Sora shot back with a smile. He slashed his keyblade through his opponent’s fur, then neatly rolled to avoid another attack to his back, arriving next to Noctis in time to stick his tongue out at him.

“Uh guys, a little help?” Prompto’s voice came from behind the beasts, sounding worried and slightly pained. 

Sora glanced at Noctis. Neither of them could see Prompto. There were too many creatures and Sora didn’t think he could fight his way through them all in time to be of much use to Prompto.

“Hey Noctis,” Sora formed an idea in his head, grinning as he did so.

“What?” Noctis snapped back, sending swords flying out at the nearest Coeurl which promptly collapsed on the ground.

“Launch me.”

Noctis narrowed his eyes at Sora, sidestepping an attack as he deliberated, before coming to a decision.

“Okay, jump.”

A sword appeared in a haze of blue, as Sora leaped upwards and landed on the weapon. Without pause he pushed off it, somersaulting through the air until he ended up with his keyblade embedded between a Coeurl’s shoulders and Prompto’s shocked face in front of him.

“Hiya,” Sora said, before jumping off his victim and using the height gained to come slamming back to the ground in a flurry of movements, forcing the beasts about to pounce on Prompto to move back or be sliced to pieces.

“Oh my Six that was awesome!” Prompto exclaimed, having gotten over his surprise in time to shoot several bullets at one Coeurl that had been caught in Sora’s attack, quickly ending it.

“Man, you’ve got to teach me th- Sora watch out!” 

Sora turned too late. 

He felt the beast crash into him, causing pain to spread into what he knew would be one heck of a bruise tomorrow.

He felt his body go flying as he heard panicked shouts from the others, his brain too jumbled to think of using an aerial recovery.

Sora felt his head slam against a rock, felt a sharp pain, before darkness swept across his vision and he blacked out.

 

Ventus woke up.

He could feel Sora’s body breathing harshly, along with pain in both his side and his head. The clarity of everything was refreshing.

Ventus could feel a tightness in his lungs, along with a burning in his legs, probably from exertion, and a cool liquid, most likely blood, dripping down his face. He could also hear noises in the background, but ignored them. Sora must have given him control, considering how sensations were usually muted when Sora was in the lead. 

Ventus had been dozing for the last few days, only semi aware of what Sora had been doing. He assumed Sora was in a fight but Ventus didn’t know much more than that.

He quickly got the picture as he turned around to survey the scene.

There was a group of beasts attacking. Ventus could see Sora’s friends fighting them off in the background, clearly outnumbered, but he didn’t have time to worry about them. A monster had peeled off from the group, no doubt to continue its attack on Sora.

Ventus smiled. He had a quick stretch, shaking his arms out and twisting his neck in order to adjust to Sora’s body, before he stuck out one hand.

In a burst of light Wayward Wind appeared. The familiarity of his keyblade was comforting; its handle was worn with constant use, even if that use was long ago. He held it in his usual backwards grip and crouched down, moving into a fighting stance.

Ventus concentrated, a hum filling the air as he charged up his magic. Sora may have been depleted but magic came from the individual and Ventus was fully stocked. Sora needed his help in this fight and thus Ventus would give it his all.

He smiled at the oncoming beast, keyblade up, ready to begin. 

When the monster was close enough, Ventus whirled past it. He ended up behind it in order to perform a jumping attack, a slash that was quickly followed by a series of moves that finished with the monster dead.

Wasting no time, he dashed into the middle of the fray.

Once there Ventus lifted his keyblade high and summoned wind. The aeroga spell caused the surrounding enemies to go flying backwards, which Ventus immediately takes advantage of, leaping after the closest to perform an aerial attack. He darts between enemies, pushing off them to keep himself in the air, before falling back to the ground and immediately starting up the attack again.

Every move Ventus makes is calm and precise, even as he moves with a speed he knows is unrivalled amongst the other keyblade wielders. This may not be his body but it does the job and he begins to laugh as he stretches his muscles for the first time in what feels like an age. His unorthodox hold on his keyblade lends itself to his advantage, every blow hitting twice and he flows through the battle with unprecedented speed, launching attack after attack on these new foes.

Ventus targets weak spots, hitting joints, slicing whiskers, honing in on necks and unprotected chests. He blanches a bit at the blood, a heavy reminder that these are not the unversed or heartless but he can’t let it deter him. He has a fight to win.

Ventus knows Sora’s friends are there somewhere, presumably fighting alongside him. He avoids hitting them and notes that they seem weary but ignores the group beyond that, confident they can avoid getting hit in the amount of time it takes him to finish the fight.

He uses several more wind spells, blowing back the enemies any time it seems like he’s going to be overwhelmed. It gives him the space he needs to think about the next attack and the time he needs to replenish his magic. He performs strike raids when he can, lining up the enemies to hit as many as possible before tossing his keyblade and dodging blows in the time it takes to come back. 

Occasionally he adds various spells to this toss, alternating between using wind to direct its path and light to scatter and hit more enemies. 

Finally, it seems like the number of foes is lessening and Ventus prepares to finish it. 

He performs one last aeroga, this time drawing the beasts closer and leaving them stunned, open for his next attack. With his opponents gathered, he raises his keyblade, feeling light form as he charges for his move. In one swift movement, he turns on the spot and lifting his keyblade high causing light to burst out from his body in addition to several devastating beams that rain from above.

Ventus feels Salvation start to close Sora’s wounds as he stops to looks around at the aftermath of his attack. The battlefield is quiet and Ventus sighs in relief to see that all the enemies are down for the count. He lets the tension drain from his body and relaxes, letting his keyblade vanish in a pulse of light, confident that the fight is finished. 

Gingerly, he touches a finger to the wound on Sora’s head, examining the cut. It hasn’t closed up completely; blood wells up when he presses it and Ventus winces. 

“You need to be more careful Sora,” He gently chastises, bringing his hand down once he’s convinced the damage isn’t life threatening, “You could get really hurt if you don’t watch out.”

There’s silence in response to this admonishment.

“Sora?” Ventus repeated with a frown, “are you alright?”

He had assumed Sora had given up control voluntarily, but the lack of reply is worrying.

“Sora!” Ventus knows there is panic in his voice now, but he can’t help it. What if the injury was worse than what he had thought and Sora was seriously hurt? He could feel his thoughts start to spiral. Worry for Sora was something he felt often, because despite how powerful Sora had become, Ventus couldn’t help but think of him as the young child with the massive heart so willing to help anyone. Usually Sora would reassure him at this point, rebuff his concerns, but he wasn’t replying.

_Calm down idiot. There’s no need to freak out, he’s just unconscious. Light knows his skull’s too thick for permanent damage._

Ventus felt relief flood through him at Roxas’ snarky reassurance.

“He’s okay?”

_He’s fine._

“Thank goodness,” Ventus heaved a sigh, closing his eyes briefly, “Oh and thank you Roxas.”

_Whatever._

“Wait, are you sure that it’s alright for him to sleep?” Ventus tried to draw on Aqua’s medical lessons, sure she’d told him something about concussions, “isn’t it bad to sleep with a head injury?”

Ventus can practically hear Roxas rolling his eyes.

_You think all sleeping is bad, you’re not exactly objective._

“You try being asleep for over ten years and see how you like it,” Ventus muttered, but he relented and let the point go, casting his gaze upwards.

As he looks up, his breath catches in his throat.

The sky has darkened to an inky blackness, with stars having appeared all across the night. The sight is breath-taking.

He calms down almost immediately; he has always loved looking up at the night sky.

“The constellations in this world are beautiful,” Ventus commented, smiling as takes in the magnificent view.

 _Yeah, they are._ Roxas refrains from commenting further than that, extending the same courtesy that Ventus gives him when Roxas goes quiet during a particularly pretty sunset.

“It’s an interesting world this, no wonder Sora likes it here,” It sure has its fair share of tough fights, Ventus mused, most of his attention still caught up in the stars.

 _Yeah, it’s great. Listen you might want to stop talking to me out loud._ Roxas sounded slightly rushed now, a hint of warning in his voice.

“What? Why?”

_Sora’s friends are looking right at you, watching him talk to himself and generally act like a crazy person while he ignores them to look at a sky he’s seen several nights in a row now._

This grabs Ventus’ attention and he drags his gaze from the heavens to look at Sora’s friends, who are all standing in front of him and appear to have been calling Sora’s name for the last few minutes without response.

“Oh.”

 _Yes, oh._ During his time in Sora’s heart, Roxas has perfected the act of sounding both annoyed and concerned at the same time. _Good luck._

 

They had been outnumbered from the start. Noctis knew it was only through quick thinking and dumb luck that no one had got seriously injured yet. It felt like they had been fighting forever, although realistically he knew it had only been half an hour. It was still way too long. The group was exhausted and there wasn’t even any high ground for Noctis to warp to and recover. Safe to say, they were in trouble.

It was only a matter of time before one of them got hit and didn’t get up, but Noctis would never have thought it would be Sora.

Sora was very much the kid of the group, despite his vehement protests otherwise. This made it even worse when a Coeurl got in a lucky hit from behind which sent Sora flying and Noctis couldn’t do a damn thing to help.

“Sora!” Noctis yells, stabbing at the Coeurls with a greater ferocity, trying to break through in order to make sure he was okay. Noctis could hear the others start to make similar efforts from where they were.

He could barely see Sora through the mass of Coeurl, but from what he could see, Sora was slumped against a rock completely unmoving.

Summoning another blade Noctis sent it flying through the nearest Coeurl, managing to break through the line, only to find Sora upright once more.

“Sora, are you okay?” Noctis called, relieved but also concerned when Sora completely ignored him, “Sora?”

Noctis had to shift focus when a Coeurl pounced at him, warping in time to dodge the attack and return a counter blow. When he glanced back, Sora had summoned a keyblade, so Noctis assumed he was alright.

Noctis plunged back into the fray, chucking his sword and following through with a warp strike. He struck at a Coeurl, but he kept on being attacked from behind, leading to none of his attacks landing with his full force, since he kept on having to dodge. He heard a shout of warning from Ignis to Sora and turned to look once more.

A Coeurl was charging towards Sora, who still looked out of it, seemingly not hearing Ignis’ calls. It was then Noctis noticed Sora’s keyblade. It was one he had never seen before, and what was even stranger was how he was holding it; Sora’s grip on his weapon was backwards.

Prompto had also noticed Sora’s impending doom, and fired a couple of shots at the beast.  
“Sora, get out of the way!” Gladio roared, as all members of their party tried to fight their way to Sora.

Turns out they needn’t have worried.

Noctis knows that Sora is a good fighter, a great fighter even. He’s powerful, agile and has more than a few tricks up his sleeves.

Noctis has never seen Sora fight like this.

While Sora is an excellent fighter, he’s a bit all over the place. His fighting style is rough and unpolished and to Noctis, who has been trained by Gladio since he was young, it’s obvious that Sora has had little to no formal training.

Noctis can’t tell that looking at Sora now.

Every move he makes is precise and he moves about so quickly that Noctis can barely track his movements, only the devastation he’s leaving in his path. Noctis keeps on fighting, but he doesn’t feel like they’re barely holding on anymore. There are more dead Coeurl than alive ones and the number is swiftly dwindling. With a final burst of wind and light, the battle is over.

Noctis moves to regroup with the other three, all of whom are watching Sora as well.

Sora doesn’t look like himself. This was a strange thing to think but it was true. His expression is wrong. As the boy stood there talking to himself, an oddity in itself, his eyes never opened fully. They were half closed as if Sora wasn’t fully awake and they had a melancholy look to them. His smile wasn’t quite right either. Even when Sora stared up at the sky in seeming wonderment, his smile never stretched past small, although Noctis didn’t think he looked any less happy for it.

Everything about him was just off. Sora was never one to do things by half, yet there he was, every movement smaller somehow, more careful, less carefree.

“Sora? Uh, you alright there bud?” Prompto asks, nervously shifting from foot to foot.

“Sora?” Noctis echoes when Sora doesn’t answer.

Gladio and Ignis call out as well, everyone worried about their youngest party member.

Sora doesn’t look particularly hurt other than his head wound which is worrying but not critical and it doesn’t seem serious enough to make Sora lose his marbles. Yet that is exactly what appears to have happened, considering Sora is standing there, outright ignoring them, talking to himself and looking completely different.

At last Sora seems to realise that they’re there. He gives a jump and turns around, looking oddly guilty, before his features arrange themselves into a placid smile.

“Oh, hello there,” His voice is softer than usual, Noctis notes with concern.

“Uh, hi?” Prompto looks at the others, as if checking that everyone else had noticed that something is wrong.

“Are you alright Sora?” Noctis asks cautiously.

“I’m fine, although-“ Sora pauses, gaze wandering for a second before refocusing, “Yes, I should probably get this head wound checked out.”

Noctis isn’t completely convinced that Sora is talking to them. He glances over to Ignis, who is frowning.

Ignis hesitates, assessing the situation before coming to his conclusion.

“You fought differently from usual just then. Not just by a little but a completely separate fighting style. You have a keyblade we’ve never seen before, used in a grip completely foreign and your speed was unparalleled. You even- you’ve somehow managed to look different despite not obviously physically changing so I have to conclude that…well, you’re not Sora, are you?” Ignis states, adjusting his glasses slightly as he stares at Sora.

“What are you on about Specs? How can he be anyone else?” Prompto says, gesturing at where Sora stands, looking exactly the same as always apart from the odd expression.

However, Sora merely smiles, before answering with, “All valid points and all quite true.”

Immediately Gladio resummons his great sword, swinging it to point at Sora(?).

“Who the hell are you and what have you done with the kid?” He growls.

Prompto also had his gun back in his hand, although he seemed a bit more hesitant about pointing it at his friend.

“I’m Ventus,” The boy looks unconcerned about the threat to his life, even as his hands come up in a placating gesture, “You can call me Ven.”

“Where’s Sora?” Noctis asks. He hasn’t summoned his weapon yet, wanting to wait to see what this Ventus would do. He’s aware that the boy has made no move against them and hasn’t even recalled his keyblade. However, the lack of Sora is worrying and he’s not sure if Ventus had something to do with that or not.

“He’s fine I promise,” Ventus pauses again, appearing to be listening to something none of them could hear. “He’s just asleep, the rock knocked him out.”

“Where the hell did-“

“Why have you taken his place?” Ignis cuts across Gladio, trying to keep the situation calm.

Ventus only looks slightly amused at Gladio’s anger, which Noctis doesn’t think is an appropriate reaction to a man twice the size of him holding a sword practically the same size as the boy.

“He needed help,” Ventus replies, as if it is the simplest thing in the world, “So I came to help.”

The four of them exchange a look.

“You came to help?” Noctis said slowly, “From where?”

“Uh, inside Sora? I guess.” Ventus seemed unsure how to answer this question, his hands fidgeting for a second before stilling, “I’m always here,” is what the boy settles on.

“So you’ve been hiding out just waiting for your chance to take over Sora? Is that it?” Gladio is getting more incensed with every vague answer Ventus gives. He takes a menacing step forwards but is stopped by Ignis.

“Calm down Gladio,” Ignis says, calm as ever.

“I’m not- I would never hu- Sora this would be a lot easier if you would wake up!” Ventus appears more agitated now, muttering to himself.

“No I know Roxas, I’m trying, it’s hard to- They think I’m- I’m not used to talking-”

Noctis exchanges a confused glance with Prompto. Ventus keeps on interrupting himself, talking to someone no one else can hear. Despite the craziness of the situation, Noctis doesn’t feel any bad vibes from the boy. His posture is unthreatening, and he hasn’t made a single bad move towards them.

“Stand down Gladio,” Noctis says, making a snap decision. He looks Ventus in the eye, before addressing him, “Calm down and start from the beginning.”

The boy takes a deep breath then exhales slowly. He nods slightly before talking.

“I wouldn’t hurt Sora. I would never hurt Sora. You were losing this battle and Sora got knocked out,” here he runs a hand down the back of Sora’s head distractedly, looking concerned, “so I came out to protect him and help him win.”

“But that doesn’t tell us how you’ve managed to possess Sora!” Prompto complains, fidgeting with the handle of his gun that he summoned and failed to raise.

“It’s a long story,” Ventus explains, “Sora helped me out a long time ago. He saved my life. I was…badly hurt. He gave me a save space to heal and the time in which I needed to do it.”

“But that still doesn’t tell us why you’re in Sora,” Prompto looks confused. Noctis can’t blame him.

Ventus seems to understand that this explanation isn’t enough and winds his fingers together, pausing in thought, before making a decision.

“My heart was shattered,” He continues quietly, “split in two.”

There’s grief twisted in with his words, along with a deep-seated pain. Even without knowing what such an act entails, Noctis shudders at the hurt in his voice.

“Sora talks of hearts as if they are what we call souls,” Ignis is wearing his ‘deep-in-thought’ expression, it looks a lot like his normal expression, “Would that be a correct assumption?”

Ventus nods slowly.

“That would probably be the closest approximation,” He agrees.

“When this happened, I probably should have died. But the fractured pieces of my heart were drawn to something, a light brighter and more giving than anything had the right to be,” Ventus is smiling now, fondness at the memory warming his tone. “I found Sora’s light and he offered me a place to stay and heal.

“This all happened when Sora was four. I’ve been with him ever since.” Ventus seemed to be almost finished, “My body is somewhere, I’m not sure where, lying in stasis until I can be reunited with it.”

“If Sora ever needs me to get him out of trouble, then I can take over for a short time. He’s a good fighter, if a bit reckless, so it doesn’t happen very often, but I’m always ready for when it does.”

There is an undeniable amount of love for Sora in his voice, so much so that Noctis believes him wholeheartedly when he says that he would never hurt Sora.

Ventus has stopped speaking now, shifting from foot to foot, awaiting their judgement on his story.

“Well,” Ignis says at last, “That certainly explains a few things.”

“It does?” Noctis asks.

“Yes, Sora quite often acts as if he’s holding private conversations in his head. At least I can assume that was what he was doing whenever he spaced out. It is sometimes very hard to attract his attention. I imagine this is due to you?” He queries.

“Yeah sorry about that,” Ventus locks his hands behind his head in such a Sora-like gesture that Noctis is startle by the likeness. The boy grins, “it can get pretty rowdy in here sometimes.”

“Well you don’t seem to be an enemy,” Gladio decides, dismissing his weapon, followed quickly by Prompto doing the same, “you’re not half bad in a fight kid, you’ll have to spar me someday.”

“I’ll ask Sora about it,” Ventus replies smiling, looking fully relaxed now that they’ve accepted his tale.

“You better.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Prompto interrupts, waving his hands around frantically, “you were talking to someone else before! If Sora’s asleep, does that mean there are even more people in there?”

“How long have you been musing on that?” Noctis asks, amused.

“Shut up!”

Ventus gives a small laugh.

“Yes there are more, Sora has a ridiculously big heart. I was talking to Roxas earlier.” He forestalls anymore questions with a raised hand, “He’s not a big fan of people and his story is even more complicated than mine, so I’m not going to explain.”

“Fair enough,” Noctis says, before walking closer to Ventus and slapping him on the shoulder, “Come on, now that we’ve decided you’re not evil we should set up the campsite.”

Ventus starts at the touch, before smiling.

“That sounds good,” He admits, stretching a little before yawning, “I think I’ve used up most of my energy.”

“Very well,” Ignis strides forwards, walking up the small barrier of rocks up ahead and peering over, “this appears to be a well sheltered spot and quite hidden, I would suggest setting up here.”

“Nice spot Iggy!” Prompto bounds up to Ignis before jumping off, out of view. Gladio follows after one last glance at Ventus.

Noctis hangs back and looks at Ventus.

“You sure Sora’s okay?” He asks quietly.

Ventus hums slightly and closes his eyes for a second before snapping them open.

“You needn’t worry, he’s asleep, nothing more. It was a nasty knock, but I’ve healed it some, and when we’ve rested we can heal it more.” Ventus seemed calm and unworried, so Noctis merely nodded and accepted it.

“I’m sure he’ll wake up soon,” Ventus assured him, “Roxas is too loud in there for anyone to sleep long.”

He paused, and chuckled.

“Well it’s true,” Ventus continued to himself, “I didn’t sleep for much longer after you joined the party.” And he laughed again at whatever the reply had been.

Noctis watched as Ventus laughed at someone only he could hear and shook his head, “Here I thought Sora’s story couldn’t get any crazier,” He muttered.

Ventus’ eyes refocused after Noctis spoke and shrugged slightly, “Sorry, I’m not that used to being physically present anymore.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

Noctis watched Ventus a couple of seconds longer. It was strange looking at his friend’s body and seeing a stranger. For all that it was Sora, the way Ventus held himself differed. He was a little more closed off and distant, as though he wasn’t quite there. Which, Noctis supposed, was true. Every movement he made was smaller than Sora’s usual exuberant self. His eyes, half lidded and sharp as they were, looked soft and sad, despite his cheerful nature.

He looked, Noctis thought, like someone who has suffered some great tragedy.

And yet he smiles and laughs, just as freely as Sora.

“Hey, Noctis,” Ventus spoke suddenly and Noctis shook himself out of his thoughts.

“I just wanted to thank you, all of you really, for looking out for Sora,” Ventus was smiling at him and  
his voice was genuine as he said, “He needs someone looking out for him, as reckless as he is and while Riku and Kairi aren’t around, you’re all keeping him safe, so thanks.”

Noctis blinks, slightly taken aback, before nodding, “He’s a good kid and a good fighter, we’re lucky to have him around to save our asses every so often.”

Ventus accepted this answer with a nod and a look of thoughtful contemplation.

“Come on,” Noctis starts towards the rest of the group, “Ignis’ll have started cooking already and we should probably see to your head before food.”

Ventus touches the wound, looking as if he’d already forgotten about it, and followed after Noctis, to where the small glow of a campfire had already started up.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed, and I might continue this at some point, as the original plan was to go on a little longer and introduce Roxas as well, but I thought I should just post what I've got, since it's been in my documents for ages.


End file.
